GM Brandon Beane says Bills are 'still in the process' of finding a franchise QB

Tyrod Taylor is most likely out the door in Buffalo after a playoff appearance

After a one-and-done playoff appearance, the Bills seem to be looking for other answers at quarterback. The Bills snapped a 17-year playoff drought with Tyrod Taylor at the helm, but a poor performance against the Jaguars (as an offensive unit, to be fair to Taylor) sent the Bills home in the wild-card round. Taylor's contract gives the Bills an out this year; releasing him will clear about $9.4 million in cap space.

So, in spite of a decent statistical season, the Bills seem to be ready to take that out. General manager Brandon Beane, speaking on WGR 550, hardly gave Taylor a vote of confidence, saying that the Bills are "still in the process" of finding a franchise quarterback .

"It's a quarterback league, and until you know you have the guy that you're definitely going to build this team around and the offense around, you're constantly searching," Beane told Howard Simon and Jeremy White on Wednesday. "The teams that make the runs in the playoffs consistently have a franchise guy that they lean on year in and year out. We're still in the process of getting that accomplished."

Beane also spoke on his prior search with the Panthers, which ultimately netted them Cam Newton.

"I think every time you go through something like that it helps you," he said. "You live and you learn, you make your notes, what did you think went well, where do you think you could've done a little bit better. Going through that process back in 2011 with Carolina, we did more research on Cam and the other quarterbacks than we had done at any previous point in my time with Carolina. It definitely helps to have a plan, and know how you're going to solve a problem and answer the questions when it's time to draft."

The Bills have no shortage of options in looking for their next guy. Even though Nathan Peterman likely isn't the answer, there's a ton of potential in this year's draft. Some quarterbacks may be hitting the free-agent market as well, most notably the Chiefs' Alex Smith (if the Chiefs choose to move past him).

Either way, the Bills got over one hump and snapped their playoff drought. Now they need to take it to the next level.